Isolated and embroiled in a custody battle, Mary is desperate for a friend. So when she meets the charming and enigmatic Willa at a Brooklyn playground, their connection feels fated. But during a margarita-fueled moms’ night out, Mary shares her darkest secret about her ex, George, and the next morning Willa simply disappears. No calls, no texts, nothing. Two months later, Mary’s divorce is almost finalized, and she’s trying to build a new life for her son in upstate New York. On her first day in town, she runs into Willa . . . only Willa’s name is now Annie, and she’s got an entirely new family in tow. When George turns up dead and Mary becomes the prime suspect, she has no choice but to turn to her only friend in town: Willa.
As coincidences—and evidence—pile up, Mary begins to wonder whether Willa had something to do with George’s death. Is the woman a friend or a foe, a confidante or just a con? Mary must uncover the truth before she loses everything.
Not for me.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group for giving me an advance copy.

Gripping and twisty with short chapters and cliffhanger’s delving into friendship, betrayal.. and yes🙋🏼‍♀️ MORALLY flawed characters (my favorite to read!).. along with a murder mystery to solve. Not to mention there’s a con-artist, a bitter ex, an ugly divorce and a custody battle. It’s drama filled, the tension is high. And that ending 🤯.. WHAT A SHOCK! Great storytelling, a fast paced domestic thriller I found highly entertaining!👏🏻🍿4.5 stars — Pub. 2/20/24

Thanks to NetGalley, PENGUIN GROUP Putnam and G.P. Putnam's Sons for inviting me to receive an early copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

What a fantastic thriller! I loved that this one went back and forth between the present story and the characters past history. The liked the double POV between Willa and Mary and how each character was so different yet is blended the story so well together. I couldn’t stop reading this one and was dying to know where the story was going and I have to say it was totally unexpected in the best possible way! I was so intrigued with these characters back stories as well and how it was affecting their present lives.

This is a very suspenseful thriller type of book where you know something is up with the friend (thanks to the title!) but you're just not really sure what.

I thought it was well-written and kept me wanting to finish it to find out what was up. A mother decides she has to leave her very well-to-do husband and meets a woman at a playground where the kids begin to play together and they become very close very quickly. The the friend absolutely disappears - just ghosts the other mother. Why?

I thought the author did a great job at keeping the suspense level high while still keeping it "real."

Thank you to NetGalley, Leah Konen and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC.

Ooh this was good! Maybe a little predictable, but twisty enough to keep me guessing. Konen has an immersive writing style- the more I read, the more I wanted to read. The flawed morally grey characters made the story so fun.

This is my second book by Konen and while I enjoyed the first one, this was even better. I can’t wait to read more by her!

4 out of 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you NetGalley for an early copy. All opinions are my own.

Keep Your Friends Close comes out 02/20/24. If you enjoy domestic thrillers with friendships, betrayal, and a murder mystery aspect, definitely check this one out.

Thank you NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Overall, this was a good read. I enjoyed the story. But, I just did not like the main character, Mary. She leaves her husband, which was the right choice. However, then she caves and is about to take him back. I just found the passiveness of the character to be unbelievable.

The plot was intriguing and the story kept me engaged. Mary leaves her husband, George, who comes from a rich and powerful family. She is sharing custody with him but he keeps threatening to take full custody of their son. She doesn't have the means to fight his lawyers so she feels like she is at a loss. Then, she meets Willa. They become fast friends. Willa seems to have a great life going and promises Mary that she will do anything for her friend. So, when Mary's husband winds up dead and Mary is the top suspect, is she guilty, or does Willa really just keep her promises?

This book was great! A fast paced mystery I couldn’t wait to finish! This story is about Mary, who is going through a divorce and her soon to be ex is not happy. Mary meets a new friend Willa at the park while with her toddler son. Willa has a crazy past and things are not what they seem. This story has so many twists, turns, surprises and characters with interesting personalities! The author does a great job of pulling in the reader and making you feel like you know all the characters in this mystery. Someone ends up dead, and the ending will be a shocker!
Thank you to Netgalley and Putnam for the eArc for my honest review!

I am a big fan of the author's previous works! Leah excels in the niche of mommy drama and her books are easy to read and relatable. However, this one fell flat for me. There were some twists, but it was fairly predictable. This is a slow burn, but so much that it was tough to keep my attention. This felt about 75 pages too long. A few things that happened felt just too convenient for the story like the author forced them to make them work. 

I did really like that the faux friendship between Mary and Willa was the crux to the story and if their decisions were made in support of or against the other.

The story is told in dual timelines and multiple POVs. I loved having Willa's chapters weaved into it as well.

Recommend if you enjoy
Domestic thrillers
Rich people drama
Friends or frenemies
Mommy drama stories

This was okay, and was fast paced enough to keep my interest, but didn’t wow me. I kept on waiting for more twists, and while there were some, some were fairly predictable.

I received a DIGITAL Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. I was not expecting the plot twist at the end. By the time the major twist came I had thought everything was figured out.

This was definitely a slow burner of a book but I didn't find it boring at all. It moved very smoothly and kept my attention. I went through the book basically not trusting anything Willa said and wanted to know the truth at all times.

I would definitely give other books by this author a chance.

4.5 stars

I enjoyed this book—it was a little longer than I thought it had to be but overall a good book—I would recommend this to my friends

****Publishing February 20, 2024****

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Imagine your best friend disappearing only to discover that she is living in the town you just moved to, but under a different name. This is exactly what happened to Mary when she moved to Woodstock, NY in order to be closer to her family and her ex-husband, George, because that was the agreement she had made with George for their son.

George, one minute sending threatening texts and then the next begging to make up, so it angered Mary! When George doesn’t show up as expected, she goes to his brother’s house and finds her ex-husband dead. Mary is treated like a suspect. Can she prove her innocence? How will she handle going through divorce, juggling a toddler and rediscovering her best friend living under a different name? Is it what it seems?

This fast-paced domestic thriller will leave you feeling shocked as this book has an unexpected plot twist that will keep you guessing until all is revealed! A highly entertaining book, that is perfect for any vacation!

Thanks to PENGUIN GROUP Putnam (G.P. Putnam's Sons), I was provided an ARC of Keep Your Friends Close by Leah Konen via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. #Netgalley #KeepYourFriendsClose

Mary’s life is a Cinderella story. She is married to a handsome and wealthy man who adores her, living a life of luxury and ease with a son they both cherish. The Haywoods are rich, that much she knew going in. They are also manipulative, undermining, and vindictive. It takes a while for Mary to realize this, but when her brother-in-law, Henry, divorces his wife, the curtain rises. Henry strips his estranged wife of financial support and valuable personal belongings, ensuring she has no means of support. Retribution from a spoiled, rich son who is used to yeses. Leave a Haywood and expect no mercy.

George had helped his brother, so, why did Mary expect different treatment when she leaves George? Because he is the good son, runs the Haywood’s nonprofit and helps women in developing nations? Haywood blood runs in his veins, but she naively thinks he will honor their custody agreement even though it is clear that he doesn’t want to lose her.

Mary is trying to create a life for she and her son, Alex, when she meets Willa. They have an immediate connection and quickly build a friendship Mary desperately needs. Mary has been self-medicating lately and is prone to drinking and sharing. Putty in the right hands. Then Willa disappears. Mary has lost her shoulder to cry on when George reneges on their shared custody agreement and seems to be building a case of unfitness against her. With no money to hire a lawyer capable of facing the Haywood’s powerhouse law firm, the noose is tightening.

George makes a final plea to meet with Mary to discuss their marriage, but he never shows up. She finds him at his brother’s property when she opens the door and trips over his lifeless body. The scene suggests a deranged—or vengeful—person committed the crime. Mary quickly becomes a suspect, and her only hope of seeing Alex again is to find the killer before she is arrested.

This title lives up to its billing as a suspense thriller. There is a sinister feel to every page.

Thank you to PENGUIN GROUP Putnam and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

This was a really good read. The author did a great job with character and plot development. There were so many twists in this that kept me on my toes.

This was a good read - I really enjoyed this book. I'm so glad that I got the chance to read it early and will definitely be recommending it to multiple people who enjoy these types of novels. I enjoyed the characters and especially enjoyed the writing by this author. I'm excited to see what the author comes out with next as I'll definitely be reading it! Thank you to the publisher for my early copy of this book!

Thank you SO much to Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC of Keep Your Friends Close via Netgalley. You made my year.

Thrilling and endlessly twisty, Keep Your Friends Close kept me on the edge of every page, desperate to know the truth. Our heroine is Mary, who is near the end of an ugly divorce and custody battle with her bitter ex, George. Her only goal is to maintain a fair agreement to share their son, Alex, and have a fresh start. But George isn’t quite ready to let her go, and leverages his family’s wealth and status to place her in an impossible position. When George turns up dead, Mary is suspect number one, and her relationship with Alex is on the line. But Keep Your Friends Close isn’t really about Mary and George. It’s about Mary and Willa.

Charming, seductive and hard to resist, Willa is everything Mary could want in a friend. Mary splits open and spills all her secrets without reservation. Yet, like a bad date, Willa ghosts Mary near the end of her marriage, leaving her alone to pick up the pieces. When Mary sees Willa again – or at least a woman who looks like Willa and is calling herself Annie – she is determined to get to the bottom of what happened to her friend, and who this familiar stranger really is. Told both in the present and the past, the two timelines continue to build their perspective climaxes, both equally jaw-dropping.

I’ve read so many domestic thrillers, but the twist of this one still surprised me. I really loved that the heart of the story was the (faux?) friendship of these two women and most of the big moments hinged on what decisions they would make because of or for each other. The swapping back and forth between present and past was both smart and annoying. Getting to the end of a chapter and being left on a cliffhanger and knowing I’d have to read the whole next chapter to get back to this time was incredibly effective. I couldn’t put this book down, and neither will you. Keep Your Friends Close… but maybe keep this book even closer.

Thank you to Net Galley for this advanced copy in exchange for a review. This is my third Leah Konen book and it may have overtaken The Perfect Escape as my favorite one! It is easy to read in one or two sittings because there is no such part in it that is a "good place to stop" because the twists keep coming at you from all angles. One thing I love about this author is how well she develops her characters and this book is no exception. Perfect for people who love domestic thrillers full of deceit with a pinch of rich people drama sprinkled in. This book is to be released on February 20th.

Publication date: February 20th, 2024
Page count: 297
Genre: domestic thriller
Setting: Brooklyn, Woodstock NY
POV: Mary, Willow
Features: Wealthy family dysfunction

Well written fast paced, mystery filled with twists, greed, revenge and murder. Engaging from the first page, and consistently engaging throughout.

This is my first book by Leah Konen, and I will definitely now be reading more of her books!

Thank you to author, publisher, NetGalley for advanced audio copy. This is an honest voluntary review.

fantastic and strong thriller by Leah Konen, who isn't an author i've read too much before but will certainly look at now. this work was gorgeous. thanks for the arc!

i especially loved how willa's pov was woven into the whole mess.

Keep Your Friends Close was an addictive, fun and well thought out book that kept me on my toes doing my best to figure not only who could be trusted but whodunit. Leah Konen first came on my radar when I read All the Broken People and I have been a fan ever since. This is the fourth book of Konen's that I have read, and she delivered yet again! I know that I can count on a twist filled, well written and gripping read when I pick up one of her books.

In the beginning of the book, Mary could really use a friend. She has decided to leave George, her controlling husband, and is amid a custody battle with him. When she takes her toddler, Alex, to a playground, she meets Willa and they become fast friends. But after Mary shares something with Willa, her calls are no longer returned. Months later, after moving, Mary sees Willa, who now goes by Annie, on the street in her new town. Top that off with George being found dead and well, Mary's life is turned upside down.

This proved to be a fast read for me. I never knew who could be trusted and at times wondered if Mary herself could be trusted. I enjoyed how this book was told going back and forth between the past and present. Readers are given information little by little but only enough to keep the carrot dangling in front of our noses.

I enjoyed the tension that flowed throughout this book. There is plenty of drama, secrets, twists, and turns along the way. I flew through the pages as I wanted to know who could be trusted, who is lying, who is manipulating, and the identity of the killer. The characters are an interesting lot. I felt for Mary. Wanting a friend so badly and being ghosted. I also felt for her having to deal with not only her controlling husband/ex-husband but also his family members as well.

Leah Konen delivered another thrilling and shocking read! I look forward to reading more of her books in the future.

Tense, dramatic, gripping, shocking, and hard to put down!